1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an apparatus and method for producing a dough roll piece, and, particularly, to an apparatus and method for producing a dough roll in which the number of layers of a finished roll can be adjusted.
2. Description of Prior Art
Many apparatuses have been developed to automatically roll up dough pieces to automatically produce dough rolls.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,704,664 teaches an apparatus for forming Swiss rolls, in which apparatus a dough sheet is fed forwardly on a lower conveyor, and the rear edge of the dough sheet is lifted upwardly by the upper segment of a lifting means, and the lifted rear edge of the dough sheet is contacted by a forwardly moving upper conveyor, to then be rolled.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,741,263 teaches an apparatus and method for producing croissants. In this apparatus dough pieces are fed between two endless belt devices whose belts move in opposite directions, and then the dough pieces are rolled. Mean are provided to adjust the gap between the two belts so as to decrease the gap so as to kick up the forward end of the dough piece. The forward end of the dough piece contacts the upper conveyor, and begins to be rolled. Then, the adjustment means increases the gap between the two belts to allow for the increase in the direction of the rolled dough pieces and to permit a smooth rolling up of the dough piece. Finally, a finished dough roll is discharged from the gap between the belts. In these devices the number of layers of the roll cannot be adjusted.
In general, the number of layers of a dough roll varies based on the type of bread or confectionary produced. Therefore, if an apparatus is designed for producing a croissant, it cannot be used for producing other types of bread, such as a Swiss roll. According to the prior art different apparatuses must be used to produce different kinds of dough rolls. Further, if the thickness or length of a dough piece changes, the prior art apparatuses cannot adjust to such changes and properly roll up the dough piece.